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The Friday Cookbook Review

"The Vegetarian Times Complete Cookbook", The Editors of Vegetarian Times, Wiley Publishing, 2005

I subscribe to most food and cooking-related magazines, but Vegetarian Times is one of the few that get read on arrival. While I'm not a vegetarian, some of my clients are, and more are interested in eating lighter meals, so it's important for me to stay up to date. I can count on the magazine for a fresh batch of seasonal recipes as well as an education. This new work from the magazine's editors is a natural, beautiful extension of that.

As you'd expect, this book preaches the vegetarian gospel from a dietary, ecological and nutritional perspective. If you're used to lighter fare from such authorities as Paula Deen for example, this material might seem a bit dreary. Read it anyway...it's good for you.

Then the fun begins. For the next 450 or so pages, the authors take you on a culinary journey through every party, every beverage, baked good, salad, sauce, soup and side dish you could imagine. Change the name from "Mock Mini Meatballs" to "Party Mini Meatballs" and no one would notice the absence of meat. Same for "Soy Mock Boursin"...the taste and texture are that good. the recipe for "Wild Mushroom Ragu" is incredible.

Once you've cooked off a few of the recipes, you should be encouraged enough to try some of the ingredients that are more familiar to vegetarian cooks. Soy can be found in many forms where meat is called for - chicken strips, ground beef, pepperoni and bacon to name a few. And then there's tofu. Say the word to your average meat eater and you'll get a frown. Put it in the hands of a vegetarian cook and watch it be transformed into something just short of a miracle food.

This is a great cookbook for a beginning cook, someone who wants a new culinary challenge, the person who's truly interested in eating a more healthy diet. It covers all the basics, is packed with dietary information and great recipes. It's complete.

"Giada's Kitchen - New Italian Favorites", Giada de Laurentiis, Random House, 2009

You've seen and used cookbooks like this many times. One of the Food Network stars compiles enough recipes to fill a hundred or so pages, each paired with a mouth-watering full color photograph and just enough editorial to give it a "personal" angle. Not all are hits, but some are better than others. This is one of those.

Given Giada's authentic Italian culinary upbringing, one might expect to find every recipe starting with "...you take one 28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes...". Not so. Each of the sections, "Appetizers and First Courses" to "Desserts", features recipes that have been lightened, simplifed and made enticing. "Lamb Ragu with Mint", complete with a scratch- made Marinara, on the table in about an hour, is a prime example.

A real surprise is the chapter "Not Just for Kids", a terrific collection of recipes scaled down in size, but not flavor, for small palates and hands. Simple kid-favorites are given a twist; "Parmesan Fish Sticks" are given a cheesy crumb coating and several simple dipping sauces. She's designed "Orecchiette with Mini Chicken Meatballs" as the perfect way to get the kids involved.

Anyone who's watched her Food Network show knows Giada has a thing for chocolate. "New Italian Favorites" has no less than six and not all are found in the dessert section.

For the cook who's interested in learning about "modern Italian cooking", this is a great book to have on hand. Same holds true for the cook who's always looking for something new, for a party, for a weeknight supper, for that special dessert. It's that flexible. It's that good.

"Jamie at Home - Cook Your Way to the Good Life", Jamie Oliver, Penquin, 2007

My brother Fred has the family green thumb. Long before the snow and frost are gone from his New Hampshire lawn, Fred has flats and window boxes filled with future flora, ready to go into the ground at the first hint of spring. Having a less-than-90 day growing cycle will do that to a man.

Like most New Hampshire residents, Fred's always been ahead of the "local harvest" movement - in his case, local being about 10 feet off the side porch. What's on your dinner plate was in the ground only moments before.

Oliver takes the same approach to food in this, his eight cookbook. He's returned to his childhood home, bought himself a place with what appears to be a very large backyard complete with gardener's shed and has become something of a serious gardener. While certainly not what you'd call a formal garden, (this is Jamie Oliver after all) there are raised beds, wide flats, deep layers of loam, all of which appear to be in full-tilt summer production.

"Jaime at Home" is part friendly chat, part worthy advise, park cookbook, all set up according to the seasons, which is, I think, the way a cookbook like this should be. He takes the "use it or lose it" approach here. All the asparagus coming in at the same time? Here are 3 simple ways to prepare it, and 6 incredible recipes for it. You get the idea.

As he raises his own chickens, eggs get the same treatment. How to tell one type from another, how to put a great, simple egg breakfast on the table in a flash, then how to use them to prepare
"Fresh Tagliatelle with Sprouting Broccoli and Oozy Cheese Sauce". The soft, full color photos are almost drool-inducing.

This is a good read and an excellent cookbook for beginners and more advanced cooks alike.
Oliver writes in a friendly, engaging manner, and presents is oh-so-informal but enticing recipes in a way that makes you want to plant a garden right then and there.

As he would say, lovely.

"The Chef's Companion" Third Edition, Elizabeth Riely, Wiley Publishing, 2003
To refer to "The Chef's Companion" as a culinary dictionary would be correct, but not all that accurate. Riely's latest update to her classic of 1983 is part dictionary, part history lesson, and at times, part lifesaver. Can't remember the difference between chili and chile? Don't understand the difference between braising and poaching? This is the book you want handy.

Riely covers techniques, wines and spirits, herbs and spices. And, as one would expect on a book written by someone with Riely's credentials, multi-ethnic cuisines are covered here as well.
This lastest edition has more than 900 additions to it, with more than 5,000 terms covered. Chances are, between these covers, your culinary problem would be covered as well.

"Bobby Flay's Grill It!", by Bobby Flay with Stephanie Banyas and Sally Jackson, Clarkson Potter Publishing, 2008
Is there anyone who owns a TV or reads cookbooks who doesn't know Bobby Flay? A major Food Network star, author of 8 cookbooks having to do with grilling or American food, or both, and a serious player in the restaurant field, Bobby Flay seems to be everywhere you look. And for good reason...Bobby Flay knows food.

"Grill It!" is based on a simple premise: everything tastes better when grilled. Accept the premise, (which, IMHO, is a hard one with which to argue) and you will love this cookbook. Flay helps us lay the culinary ground work, gas vs. charcoal, rubs, marinades, etc. to urge us to go beyond that tired chicken breast and bottle of store-bought sauce. This is a book about enabling us as much as teaching us, a perfect blend of technique, technology and ingredients.

Flay has arranged "Grill It!" by foods - asparagus through white fish. Beef on sale in the market? There are nearly a dozen recipes ranging from the simpliest Texas Burger, to the sophisticated, Pressed Burger with Manchego, Serrano Ham and Piquillo-Smoked Paprika Aioli, each written in a style that is engaging and easy to follow. The thought of grilled scallops make your mouth water? The section starts with "Perfectly Grilled Sea Scallops" and goes from there. It's hard to argue with Flay's approach...learn to grill it perfectly first, then proceed.

Ben Fink's photographs are nothing short of mouthwatering. There's one of a grilled nectarine that makes you thing the fruit is translucent, a perfect match for Flay's recipes.

If you're an old hand at grilling, or if you want to be, this is a great book to have. It will have you thinking about grilling whole meals from appetizer through dessert. And what more could you ask from a cookbook?

"The Daily Soup Cookbook", by L. Kaul, B. Spiegel, C. Ruben, P. Siegel with R. Vitetta-Miller, Hyperion, 1998

One can approach this cookbook from a number of different angles. Is it the one for the person who's never had soup? Yes. The person who knows the difference between a kidney and a navy bean? Yup. The serious soup junkie who has 7 different recipes for Vichyssoise, and has them ranked according to their own personal scale of "wowness"? Them too. The authors run "The Daily Soup" chain of restaurants...soup is their thing.

Regardless of the skill level, readers are gently, and humorously, taken by the hand and shown the way...what you'll need to know, have on hand and why (the why part...verrrrry important). A good place to start is with stocks; the basics - chicken, beef, vegetable to get you going and build your confidence - Indian and Asian to get you hooked. Properly prepared, the world of soups is then presented according to their main ingredient - vegetable, tomato, rice, etc. Many of the classic soups we all know are here, some instantly recognizable, others only vaguely resembling those from childhood, and all for the good, because if there's one culinary playground that encourages experimentation, it's soup.

"The Daily Soup" is no culinary tome, written by stiffly starched, toque-wearing chef based in the south of France. This is an engaging, funny and most important, encouraging cookbook. If you're looking to make a soup out of leftovers, it's in here. If you wish to make memories with soup, it's in here too. It's that good.

"Patrick O'Connell's Refined American Cuisine - The Inn at Little Washington", Patrick O'Connell, Bulfinch Press, 2004

Every time I feel like throwing in the kitchen towel, I reach for this cookbook. Like most Americans, Patrick O'Connell learned how to cook from cookbooks, a truly self-taught talent. He combined that talent with an imagination so fertile, so creative that he has elevated American cuisine to that of haute cuisine, and in doing so, established his restaurant, The Inn at Little Washington in Virginia, as one of the best in the world.

Coming from a man who's been referred to as the "Pope of American Cuisine", this cookbook is remarkably accessible. Many of the recipes come from every American's past, but each has been updated, enhanced, refined. A recipe for something as simple as a BLT is broken down to its essential parts and completely reinvented, the recipe presented in such as way as to embolden the least adventurous cook to try it. Mac 'n cheese (homemade, not that stuff that comes in the box) becomes Macaroni and Cheese with Virginia Country Ham, elevated from its comfort food status to something truly memorable.

Unlike many "gourmet" cookbooks that serve to stroke the Chef's ego and intimidate the reader, O'Connell presents the material in a simple, engaging manner that invites and encourages. He's as skilled with a pen as he is with a knife.

This is the cookbook for every cook who wants more than put food on the table. It's pure inspiration.

"Juicing For Life - A Guide to the Health Benefits of Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Juicing", Cherie Calbom, Maureen Keane, 1992, Avery

Eat your vegetables. How many times did your Mother tell you that? Eat more fresh fruits and vegetables. How many times have you read that, seen it displayed in every food diagram, pyramid and flowchart? Everyone from the Surgeon General on down tells us the red-orange veggies fight cancer, that citrus helps our immune system and the leafy green veggies generally keep us running like a well-oiled toy train. And do we listen?

We should. We should be paying more attention now, so that down the road we won't be paying a bill much, much steeper.

Okay, lecture over. "Juicing for Life" is just plain fun. Yes, the authors are passionate about the topic and the exhuberance can get in the way a bit now and then, but after a few pages, you're hooked. Want to lose some weight? Substitute any of many of the drinks here for lunch. Your doctor says you need more fiber? Put down the Belgian chocolate and juice. Still fighting acne? You have your choice of at least five juice drinks that will help you. The section on aging alone is worth the price of the book.

Is it magic? No, like everything else, change requires behavior modification on your part and this book will show you the steps to follow, one of which is juicing. But there are no outlandish claims made here, no pills, powders or delivered-by-mail-ready-for-the-freezer meal plans involved. A ten minute swing through the produce section of any market is all you need.

Nor is there hype. The authors refer to scientific studies and research that's readily available and backed by all the recognized authorities. The path they draw from what ails you to what will help you is clear and concise.

And jucing is delicious. To even the most cola-coated, energy-boosted, bubble-bombarded palate, the juice/vegetable concoctions here are great tasting, clean, fresh, really refreshing.

Many books on juicing have been, and no doubt will be published on the topic. I have at least a half dozen in my bookcase. But this is the first one I reach for; the format is clean, orderly and makes sense. The material is well researched and written, the recipes are numerous and easy to follow. In short, it's a delicious read.

"The New Mediterranean Diet Cookbook A Delicious Alternative for Lifelong Health", Nancy Harmon Jenkins, Bantam, 2009

Part cookbook, part travelogue, part history lesson, this newly revised and updated edition of Jenkins' work is a lighted path on the road to a healthier lifestyle...if your particular road is set on the Mediterranean coastline from Spain west to Lebanon and east across North Africa. Given the region's reputation for being the home of one of the world's healthiest cuisines, perhaps more of us should be taking this road.

This is a road well-traveled by the author; her grandparents are from Puglia, the heel of Italy's boot, the topic of her 1997 cookbook, "Flavors of Puglia", published by Random House. That book focused on the manner of cooking in that part of the country, what came out of the ground, what came from the pantry, natural, neither influenced nor adorned by the "special touches" of chefs from other regions. Pure food, simple food. And incredibly delicious food.

"Mediterranean Diet" takes that one step, and many countries, further. Beginning by focusing on those methods and ingredients that make it unique, she takes us on a culinary journey of the region, much like you'd visit a restaurant by taking a multi-course meal.

And what a meal it is. Small dishes and soups from every country, breads, pastas, rices and grains, each served up with a bit of history and a mouthwatering recipe. The dressings, sauces and condiments unique to the region are covered, as are the incredible vegetable dishes and seafoods...the glorious seafoods. Meat and meat dishes from all over are covered, along with cooking, health and historical tips scattered throughout, ending, logically, with sweets.

This is not the cookbook for the time-stressed cook, nor for those who prefer picture-laden tomes. As Alice Waters puts it so eloquently, this is "an irrestible invitation to share the healthiest diet in the world...this book makes an overwhelming argument that the things that taste the best are good for you".

So true.